Dr. Jaime R. Taylor is the 16th president of Lamar University, which serves more than 17,000 students in both undergraduate and graduate programs. Before his appointment in July 2021, Taylor served as Marshall University's provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. Signature achievements during his time at Marshall include strategic planning and programming to support dramatic increases in first-year retention and six-year graduation rates, the development of new academic programs including a fixed-wing aviation program and a doctorate of business administration, and the doubling of university-wide research expenditures, the latter leading to a new Carnegie classification for Marshall as an R2 research institution.

Prior to his work at Marshall, Taylor spent a significant portion of his career at Austin Peay State University, where he served two years as interim provost and vice president for academic affairs, eight years as dean of the College of Science and Mathematics and eight years as chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy. Taylor is an award-winning teacher of physics and was honored as an Austin Peay State University Outstanding Alumni.

Dr. Taylor is passionate about the future of Lamar University. He believes in the Vision to establish Lamar University as a first choice of tomorrow’s leaders and career professionals in Texas by 2030. He promotes the ongoing Mission that Lamar University strives to educate leaders, demonstrate excellence in student learning and career readiness, and pursue research relevance. He knows that the best avenue to employment for his students is to equip them with practical skills along with a dose of liberal arts that can be beneficial to an employer from day one.

Dr. Taylor took us on a journey of Lamar’s past beginning with the Lucas Oil Gusher of 1901. This marked the birth of the modern petroleum industry. The impact on Southeast Texas was enormous. Where Beaumont was once known to primarily produce oil, Beaumont is now consistently producing Graduates through Lamar University. He recognizes that the academic programs must produce career-ready graduates to be leaders in their fields. Research must be relevant to Texas. Emerging economies require graduates to be trailblazers of the next century. This is the question – What needs to be done to be transformative?

There are so many successful graduates in a variety of professions: Lawyers, Doctors, Entrepreneurs, Actors, Musicians, Scientists, Engineers, and Teachers to name a few. The number of entrepreneurs who have started businesses, developed new technologies and advanced existing companies is staggering. All of that has come from the excellent education that Lamar has offered from the beginning. Lamar was never a normal college. As a regional school it has out-paced all other regional schools in so many areas that it is truly in a league of its own.

The future is exciting. Texas is prime for the development of chip manufacturing. Lamar is preparing for the future by developing curriculum and programs to prepare students for this exciting industry. The pre-med and pre-law programs have enriched our community by having those doctors and lawyers practice their professions right here in Southeast Texas. They studied here, left for their advanced degrees, and returned here to live and work.

Academic Excellence is a priority. The Texas Academy and the Reaud Honors College are graduating the best of the best in engineering, ASL, Deaf Studies, Pre-Med, Pre-Law and Business. High achieving students can complete the last 2 years of high school at LU for FREE (fully paid by the State of Texas). They can join the marching band, intramural sports, cheerleader, choir and student organizations. This is a huge advantage for any student who wants to advance their studies, reduce their education costs and get a jump start on their career. The Reaud Honors College is a unique opportunity for both students and professors. The students become the leaders of Southeast Texas and the academic community has the opportunity to facilitate that.

Athletics is important to Southeast Texas and Lamar is so proud of the new Athletic Director Jeff O’Malley and the new Head Football Coach Pete Rossomando. They both are interested in winning but winning with academics as well. Other athletic programs at Lamar have been winning championships and honors. The cooperation between athletics and academics is strong at Lamar and necessary for success.

Overall, the future of Lamar University is as big as the vision of its leaders and the support of the community. The Texas Legislature is aware of the success and importance of Lamar University and hopefully will be generous with the future funding of this important institution. Dr. Taylor provided our Rotary Club with a data driven, humorous, historical, and relative picture of Lamar University. He is an engaging speaker, a knowledgeable leader and a super nice member of our community. His visit with us ended with an appropriate Marching Band. Some of the Lamar Band members came in and gave us an enthusiastic performance and had everyone on their feet. Lamar University is a cornerstone of our community. The students graduate and spread the SETX spirit all over the country and the world. We are proud of their accomplishments and their contributions to our community. Thank you Dr. Taylor and all who came with you to share the message that Lamar University is the place to learn, laugh and to make life long friends. We are so proud.